Jon Jones on teammate, new UFC champ Holly Holm: GOAT of women's combat sports

Holly Holm has been showered with praise since she pulled off one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. One of the biggest compliments has come from a famous teammate: Jon Jones.

Fellow fighters, athletes and celebrities have all commented on the result and Holm’s (10-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) spectacular performance that ended when she finished now-ex-champ Ronda Rousey (12-1) with a second-round head-kick knockout to capture the UFC women’s bantamweight title. Few, though, have publicly shown as much pride in her achievement as former UFC light-heavyweight champion Jones (21-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC), who is a friend of Holm and teammate at Team Jackson-Winkeljohn in Albuquerque, N.M.

Holm’s victory over Rousey in this past Saturday’s UFC 193 pay-per-view headliner made her the first fighter to win major MMA and boxing titles. Prior to her loss, Rousey was often lauded as the world’s best female combat athlete, but Jones said Holm should be the one with the label.

Jon Jones

“In my opinion Holly Holm is already the G.O.A.T. of women’s combat sports,” Jones wrote on Facebook. “She was considered the greatest female boxer to ever compete in the sport and now she has defeated the greatest female mixed martial arts fighter to date. Her accolades are absolutely unheard of, but that’s not what makes me such a fan of Holly. It’s the way she carries herself outside of the bright lights and the arenas.”

Jones said Holm’s fighting skill isn’t the only reason she’s found such tremendous success. Her personality outside of competition has also helped her, he said, because Holm’s humility and selflessness on a daily basis are the traits of a true champion.

“I know the MMA community doesn’t really know Holly yet, so let me be the first to tell you: She is the most classy and down to earth athlete I’ve ever had the pleasure to be around,” Jones wrote. “She is the long time pride of Albuquerque, New Mexico not only because the way she competes, but the way she treats each and every individual that has the opportunity of meeting her.

“This actually can be a problem at times, a simple trip for a gallon of milk to the grocery store could take her an easy 45 minutes and she doesn’t even mind haha. If you’re impressed by Holly’s talent, wait until you get an understanding of what type of character she possesses; it is truly world class. She is a role model that you would love to have your daughter’s look up to. I’m so honored to be able to call her a teammate and most importantly a friend.”

For complete coverage of UFC 193, check out the UFC Events section of the site.